With cars beginning to drive themselves, drinking and driving could become less of a problem than it is now, assuming technology evolves to the point where humans can imbibe without endangering anyone else on the road.

The Academic Wino recently published the results from a Wine Market Council survey that found that about 40% of the 240 million adults in the United States consume wine. Within this 40%, they found that 33% of wine drinkers are considered to be high frequency wine consumers, meaning that they reported consuming wine more than once per week.

By bypassing the fermentation process altogether, the “micro winery” created by ISU professor Daniel Attinger, intends to help winemakers achieve a better understanding of wine’s fermentation processes and allows them to test fermentation methods.

Thanks to Terri at Liquid Alchemy, we are happy to share with this simple guide on the various kinds of mead;

Traditional or “Show” Mead

Traditional mead generally describes mead made only with hone, yeast and water. This is how the purists describe a traditional mead. The Mazer Cup, which is America’s mead competition, used a distinction made in some European mead competitions and designated the “Show” mead as a category in which no additional flavoring can be added.

Our Show mead is made with the finest Orange Blossom Honey producing wonderful, citrus notes.

Sack Mead is extra sweet

A sack mead is a strong, sweet mead achieved by adding extra honey creating more fermentable sugar — think of a late harvest ice wine or a barley wine. This can be the dessert wine of meads.

Mead fermented with fruits or spices

A Melomel is a mead fermented or flavored with fruit while a Metheglin is a mead that has been fermented or flavored with herbs and spices.

Hydromel Mead packs less of a punch

A Hydromel is typically a weaker mead. The majority of our meads range in similar range to that of grape wine — 10-13% ABV, a Hydromel would clock in about half that percentage. ABV less than 8-9% is considered a Hydromel for competition purposes.

As you sit back and enjoy that glass of whiskey, do you ever wonder how it made its way into your glass? Making great whiskey is a long, painstaking process but the great people at Painted Stave feel it is worth it to ensure you get nothing but the very best. Watch Mike from the Painted Stave show the beginning of the whiskey-making process.